


Cafe d'amour

by mydrarryaus



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-31
Updated: 2020-10-31
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:53:41
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,083
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27292243
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mydrarryaus/pseuds/mydrarryaus
Summary: The war is over and Voldemort is finally dead, though many lives were lost. Harry can't take it and decides to leave the wizarding world for good with no word to anyone. This is a story about growth, love, redemption, and unseen circumstances, with unexpected twists, left and right. Enjoyyyy
Relationships: Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter, Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley, Sirius Black/Remus Lupin
Kudos: 15





	Cafe d'amour

Harry's POV 

I stand on the bridge, surrounded by rubble. After throwing the now broken elder wand off the side I don't feel at peace with myself like I thought I would. I need to getaway. I briskly walk to the castle and see my best friends locked in a love-filled embrace, comforting one another. I could never ask them to do what I'm about to do. After writing my small note, I slip under my cloak and quickly place it in Hermione's lap before running off. This is what I need. Now that he is gone I'm going to start doing things for me which I know means getting into a sense of stability, mentally and physically. Which has me coming to a conclusion that has me feeling relieved rather than upset like I thought I'd be. That's how I know this is the right decision. I'm going to leave and start over. I'm going to give up magic.

First I head to the hogshead and find Hermione's bag. I rummage through it and grab all the necessities I may need. I grab the marauders map, a couple of potions ingredients, some changes of clothes, and finally a few of the non-moving pictures I had in the photo album Hagrid gave me years ago. I don't know how long I'm going to stay away but if I'm going to do this then there is no holding back. No magic whatsoever, unless it's absolutely needed. I shove it all in my rucksack along with my now mended wand. I nod to Aberforth after I'm done since he had been staring confused at my actions. "I'm going away for a while and I don't know when I'll be back." he huffs a bit but doesn't say anything else. "Can you please tell the others that.." I break off trying not to let the emotion of it all get to me "Tell them that I just needed to get away and not to come looking for me. I need this, just like they need to be here together" Aberforth nods, a very dumbledore twinkle evident in his eye.

I walk out and quickly apparate once I'm far enough from the village. I pop up in the Gringotts lobby and briskly walk up to the head goblin. "My name is Harry James Potter and I would like to withdraw some gold from my vault," I say, fake confidence thick in my voice. Even though not even a few days ago 'mione, Ron, and I had broken into here, they have seemingly forgotten or rather forgiven it all. I am led to my vault and I stock up on as much as I can fit in my coin purse, which thankfully was charmed by Hermione with an undetectable extension charm. By the time I'm satisfied with the amount, half of the immensely full vault is empty. I turn to the goblin after making our way out of the vault. "Is this the only Potter vault?" I ask "No sir. There are 2 other Potter vaults, filled to capacity, and 4 filled Black vaults passed to you by your Godfather."

"Will you please change the smallest Black vault to be under the name of Ronald Weasley and his future wife but leave all the other vaults sealed until I come back whenever I do in the future. I'm going away and I don't know when I'll be back but I don't want anyone getting access to my vaults, ministry, or friends." the goblin just nods and snaps his fingers. "It is done" he states " Mr. Weasley should receive an owl in the next hour or so of his new vault. Until the next time Mr. Potter" he leaves me at the entrance hall and I wander out, realizing slowly that I don't know where I'm going to go next. _I want somewhere peaceful, quaint, and calm. Somewhere with no wizards. Somewhere free_. I think before apparating to a place of mystery. To the place of my freedom. 

Draco's POV  
I slowly walk through the rubble and ruins that used to be the entrance to the castle I used to call home. I feel dirty, catching the glances of everyone who blames me for the death of their loved ones. If only they knew.

I had helped Fred, saved him from almost being crushed by rubble. I saved Ginnerva by blocking several of my crazy Aunt's curses. I even helped Trelawney drop her glass balls off the balcony, and covered Longbottom as he threw all his very interesting plant things at people. And, heck, I helped Harry freakin Potter as he fought Voldemort. He would have probably died if it wasn't for me, and that's not me being proud. He dropped his wand and it was too far. If I hadn't had thrown him his wand, he wouldn't have blocked the final killing curse Voldemort had sent his way. But no. No one will acknowledge that. Or even acknowledge that I don't have the dark mark at all. That because i hadn't fulfilled my task, it never stayed permanently on.

I've had enough of this.

I wander aimlessly amongst the wounded, helping Pomfrey with the healing spells every now and then before I slip out.

I need to get away from all of this. As I apparate to the manor I realize as I pack that all this in my mind equates to the entirety of the wizarding world and for once, I was okay with that. The thought of no magic calmed me and, dare i say it, filled me with a sense of content that i wanted to achieve as soon as possible. So I packed up all my belongings into my trunk, shrink my trunk, and apparate with only one thought. _Freedom._

~.~.~.~

Harry pops up in a blended wizarding/muggle town he had heard of from Hermione and groans. This is not what he wanted. With a sigh, he walks into town, thinking about what he may need to stock up on before he leaves for a nice muggle town. Muggle. He needs to convert his money. He walks with purpose to what he can only assume is a small bank. 30 minutes later, he walks out with a smile. He fiddles with the plastic muggle card in his hand. The man at the desk explained to him that it was a debit card and held all the money he had brought in and, with a simple charm, could be linked to his Gringotts vaults. As he wanders through, he passes a small book shop that seems to be calling to him. He wanders in, eyes wide at all the knowledge filling up the store. Feeling drawn to it, he walks to a shelf of maps. He looks them over and with a smile, apparates away. He knows where to go now. He finally knows. 

The small village he ends up in is alive with soft song, as the night's festivities begin. He takes in his surroundings and sees that it is indeed getting dark. He walks down the main street until he reaches a quaint-looking building. A sign visible in the front, saying in big bold letters 'FOR SALE'. With a quick wave of his wand, he sets glamours in place. His scar disappears, his eyes turn to an ice-like blue, and his hair a light brown that curled. His jawline became sharper and his skin gained a lighter tint to it. In the reflection of the window, he could see he no longer looked himself. One could say he greatly resembled a nice mix between his Godfather and Uncle Remus. 

Taking a deep breath, he knocks, and a lady answers "Yes sir? How may I help you?" "Yes uh I know this is a bit sudden but I was interested in buying the property? It says you're selling?" The lady smiles wide. "Well, young man, I will gladly talk it over with you if you don't mind. It is not every day a handsome lad shows up and wants to move into our silly little town. Come in come in" she beckons, leading him in. He surveys the small storefront and sees's a used bookstore. Still full of books? Odd. 

He reaches the kitchen and helps her in pouring tea for both of them. After settling in, she picks up again "So, what is your name young man?" Harry sips his tea as he thinks it over. This is his fresh start. His new beginning. He should be able to choose. He forces a laugh as he comes to a decision about his name "it's ridiculous, you'll laugh"   
She rolls her eyes playfully "Oh shush you, tell me." "My name is Nicodemus Peters, but you can just call me Nic ma'am" He remembered reading the name in a book for History of Magic once. It had intrigued him then and still did. "Well Nic," she says with a smile "The names Gladys. And I am so very pleased to meet you." He grins back. Maybe this wasn't going to blow up in his face. 

~.~.~.~

After talking for about an hour and a half, Harry had found out that Gladys and her husband had owned the storefront and the living area attached to it. But recently her husband, Daniel, had been in a construction accident of sorts, leaving her the only one to take care of the store. But it was getting too much for her so they were moved into a small loft on the other side of the village. Not far, only a 5 or so minutes walk from the store. She had no one to buy the store in the months that it had been on the market, and apparently, that day was the last day she was going to leave it before selling it to a construction worker who wanted the lot but not the store and house. It would break her heart to see the store get demolished, she had said. And that's what sold Harry on the place. "Now Nic, the store is a lot to handle. Do you think you could handle it?" He smiles "I think I can, yes. If only you would allow me to come to you for advice" Her smile takes up her whole face "Well then. I guess you've got yourself a bookstore lad" He stood up with her and grasped her in a hug, too overwhelmed to care about if it was proper or not. "Thank you" he whispered "I won't let you down"

She softly clucked her tongue "I can see you've got a good heart, love. I have no doubt that you will do it justice and more. Now I best be off before my Daniel starts to worry. If you would like, you can spend the night here seeing as you probably don't have a place to stay just yet? Yes, i thought as much. I will be over with the papers tomorrow say around midday. Get yourself acquainted with the shop and if you have any questions " she taps the phone on the counter " you can just ring me. The number is written under the receiver. Good night love, have a pleasant evening" she walked out with a smile. With the soft ring of the store bell, then the click of the door shutting, he let out a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding. Harry finally had peace. He couldn't help but wonder if there was some magic in place that helped him get the place so fast but he shrugged it off, knowing it wasn't possible. No one knew where he was so it can't have been magic. 

Walking up the staircase to the main living area, save the kitchen in the back of the store, he can't help but grin in excitement and happiness. It was everything he could have wanted. He had a small sitting room with an old Telly on the table. A hallway to his left led to a bedroom and an office of sorts. In the room, a plush yet simple fourposter bed, a decent sized closet, and a large bathroom. Larger than he was used to that is. With a sigh of relief, Harry laid back on the bed, staring up at the ceiling. Finally succumbing to his exhaustion, he thinks about his day, letting his last thoughts be positive despite everything.   
Life has just begun. And Harry can't wait. 


End file.
